Why an Italian restaurant owner is expanding with upscale French into The Woodlands
.jpg "A new restaurant is going into the former home of Graze in The Woodlands, 111 Woodland, just off Main Street in downtown Lexington.")
Lexington is about to get a little fancier and a bit more French.
A new restaurant called La Folie will open later this month in The Woodlands, 111 Woodland Ave. It’s going into the spot where Graze was until it closed this past winter.
Owner Carlo Vaccarezza, the racehorse owner and restaurateur behind the popular downtown Italian dining spot Frank & Dino’s, said that he hopes to open the new restaurant before the Keeneland Spring meet begins April 8.
Why French? Because of the strong connection between French cuisine and Italian, Vaccarezza said. And because he saw an opening.
“Only a couple of French restaurants in Lexington,” he said. And he thinks there’s room for more.
Le Deauville, a classic French bistro, has been open downtown for since 2003, an indication that Lexington has an appetite for a menu of authentic French food.
Vaccarezza said La Folie will be upscale, elegant and, like Frank & Dino’s, not cheap.
The menu includes favorites such as an escargot appetizer ($16), main courses of mussels ($26), duck a l’orange ($34), filet mignon au poivre ($49) and beef bourguignon ($29). The most expensive dish on the menu: Tournedos foie gras at $68.
Vaccarezza said the restaurant will be open initially only for dinner, but eventually will expand hours.
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La Folie
Where: 111 Woodland Ave.
Online: Lafolielex.com
Call: 859-309-0305
Opening: Spring 2022
This story was originally published March 7, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
